Weinglass group adds two local businessmen

September 08, 1993|By Jon Morgan | Jon Morgan,Staff Writer

Leonard "Boogie" Weinglass has added two prominent local businessmen to his investment group seeking an NFL team for Baltimore.

John Paterakis, owner of H&S Bakery in Baltimore, and Henry Rosenberg, head of Baltimore-based Crown Central Petroleum, have both joined in recent days, Weinglass said. A third, Louis J. Grasmick, head of Louis J. Grasmick Lumber Co. of Baltimore, might also join, he said.

All three men have been mentioned as potential NFL investors in the past, and Grasmick, husband of state superintendent of schools Nancy S. Grasmick, was an investor in the aborted NFL bid of Maryland-based author Tom Clancy.

"I just wanted to make our application look better, and they do have some bucks," Weinglass said. He said he would remain the controlling partner of the team.

Weinglass described both men as longtime friends. Paterakis, he said, "reminds me of myself -- he was a poor kid who made money."

Neither Paterakis nor Rosenberg responded to requests during the past week for comment.

Baltimore is competing with St. Louis, Memphis, Tenn., Charlotte, N.C., and Jacksonville, Fla., for one of two franchises the league will award late next month.

In addition to the Weinglass group, Florida-based corporate investor Malcolm Glazer also is seeking to be a Baltimore NFL team owner. The league is expected to choose between the two prospective owners if it picks Baltimore as a site for an expansion team.